by Jason Cheek
“Is that all you’ve got?” I spat. Trails of blood dribbled from the corners of my lips and eyes as I brought my Greatsword up into a high stance over my head. While I might look like something the cat drug in, my Hit Points had nearly recovered to 80% between the healing spell and the potions I’d hurriedly gulped down. Although I wanted to top off my health, the Troll’s ferocious assault didn’t give me a chance. Bellowing in rage, the beast rushed me with a guttural curse.
Our two-handed swords continuously rang as we battled against one another on the side of the mountain. With every swing I fell back further down the slope, barely keeping away from the Troll’s black blade, while every slash I scored against the mob’s rocky flesh healed within moments. Even though I worried about how I was going to take the beast down, my main concern at that moment was having enough distance to safely use my blade’s special attack without unintentionally taking-out the two women I was trying to save.
I watched the growing distance closely. As soon as I hit the 30 yards mark, I triggered my AOE attack. Red mist billowed out around me in 10-yard radius as I triggered the Greatsword of Corruption’s special attack. The effect was immediate. Black splotches of decay began spreading across the Troll’s bare chest as the mob roared in confused agony, giving me the time I needed to slip behind the creature’s broad back to hamstring its knee and sear it open with a follow-up Fire Blast.
A sudden backhand swipe grazed my head as I leaped clear of the monster. I felt warm blood running down the side of my face as I circled the mob warily with my blade cocked over my shoulder ready to strike. The plan I’d come up was simple. Even though the Blood Plague’s effect wasn’t exactly powerful, I hoped the special attack would be enough to nullify the Troll’s natural regenerative ability. It didn’t have to be permanent, just long enough for me to take the bastard down to work some magic. Besides, the 300 points of free damage wasn’t anything to sneeze at, even if it had a three-minute cooldown. I quickly ducked under another wild swing and sliced the tendons of the remaining good leg, dodging the follow-up strike as I seared the open wound with another fiery blast.
Reducing the Troll’s mobility immediately changed the direction of the fight. It went from a hopeless cause to a battle of endurance. The strategy at its core was like many dungeon bosses I’d taken down in my previous games where damage could only be done within a limited window of opportunity. Only this boss had the added complexity of needing every wound followed up with a searing blast of flame. If not for my multi-class build and unique gear from completing the Delonshire Mine, I would’ve been toast.
The mage and warrior skills I’d worked on developing from day one allowed me to whittle down the mob’s massive Hit Points while my priest abilities kept me alive. If not for the Holy Shield spell, I’d have died twenty times over during the fight. The shield allowed me to get a couple of strikes in during the Blood Plague’s AOE attack without taking any additional damage, which was the only thing keeping me on my feet since my Hit Point bar was hovering in the yellowish-orange zone.
The battle became a rinse and repeat. For three minutes I kept out of range of the Troll’s black blade as he lunged through the knee-high snow trying to get at me. Then for 30 seconds, I went balls to the wall on the attack. Shooting out a barrage of fire Blasts at the edge of the Troll’s reach as I tried to get behind the mob, before going in for a couple of strikes with my blade. It wasn’t fast and it wasn’t clean, but it got the job done.
About halfway through the fight, Neysa came limping up wanting to help out, but I sternly ordered her to stay back. Thankfully, this time the little Dire Wolf listened to me. When my last stroke finally severed the Troll’s greasy head from its thick neck, all that I wanted to do was just collapse in the deep snow in exhaustion. Parts of my armor were gaping open. I was bloody, tired and both Neysa and I needed to be healed up. But, there were too many things that needed doing. Foremost, was making sure the fucking Troll stayed dead, then I needed to see about the women I’d been trying to save.
The only thing I could come up with for the Troll was gruesome, but it was all that I could think of in the worsening blizzard. I felt myself turning a shade of green as I kneeled down next to the creature’s severed head. Again I had to remind myself this was only a video game. The stench of the steaming, dirty corpse was all too visceral, but I’d seen more than enough horror films to know you always made sure the evil creature was truly dead before turning your back on its rotting corpse.
This time, the thing I was trying to ensure was dead was something that could easily come back from the dead if I didn’t do this right. I didn’t have enough wood to burn the corpse, and even if I did, I was on the side of a mountain in the middle of a freaking blizzard. Besides, even though my Fire magic skill had grown to level 6 from the drawn-out fight, there was no way my measly Flame Blasts could burn the corpse enough to make me feel safe. That’s was why I was splitting the mob’s head open like an overripe pumpkin. I did puke when brain juice splattered my face, but I still didn’t let that stop me.
Holding my breath, I used nearly the last of my Mana to scorch both halves and the bloody stump on the body. Overkill? Maybe, but I wasn’t taking any chances at this point as I looted the corpse. I just stuffed everything into my bag without even looking at it; there’d be time enough later to go through the loot.
Next, I checked Neysa over quickly. Thankfully, pets must have a similar healing speed out of combat as players did for healing since she was already nearly back to full health. Ruffling her fur as she nipped happily at my face, I just telling about what a good girl she was when a sobbing from above brought my mind back to the women I’d been trying to save. Jumping to my feet, I hurriedly slogged up the hill leaving Neysa behind sniffing at the Troll’s dead carcass.
I scanned the slope for more enemies as I warily approached. The younger girl, who was currently laid over the older woman crying, didn’t seem to take note of my crunching footsteps. I was opening my mouth to introduce myself when the girl threw herself back in the snow. Immediately, the injured woman underneath the girl thrust at me with the Troll’s spear as the girl held her purplish glowing hands out to blast me with some sort of spell.
Although the women’s sudden assault caught me off guard, I’d already refreshed both of my shields as the spear point was stopped by a gold-tinged barrier and the purple bolts were absorbed by the shimmering blue field that suddenly took shape in the air around me. Holding my hands up in the universal gesture of peace before either woman could follow up their attack with a second strike, I spoke in a rush of words.
“Hold up dammit, I’m trying to help you!” I saw a look of confusion pass over both woman’s face as I hurriedly continued. “Lady Chiara sent me to scout BrokenFang Hold and to look for survivors!” As both women hesitated, I irritability snapped. “Now stand down and let me help!”
It came to me afterward that I probably should’ve taken a different tone for my introduction, but I was pissed off at having the people I was trying to save take a shot at killing me. I didn’t bother to wait for the women to make up their minds and took the lead myself as if their compliance was a given. Plopping down unceremonious in the snow beside the injured woman, I knocked the spear out of her grasp and began looking over her wounds. She must have been driving herself on willpower alone, because, as soon as she realized I was there to help, she collapsed weakly back onto the snow coughing up blood. Focusing over her head, I saw her name and stats shimmer into view. Ulia Dathielen, House of Kayden, Swordswoman.
“You’re from House of Kayden?” The younger woman asked confused looking above my head. The purple glow from her hands disappeared in a dark flash as she collapsed across from me, her face distraught. “Even if you had healing potions, the damage is too extensive. There’s nothing you can do for her; she’s dying.”
Nothing I could do for her? For a split second, the woman’s comment caught me off guard, until I remembered that up till now House of Kayden h
ad had no healers. At least not for a long ass time. Giving a reassuring smile, I checked my Mana and began casting my first healing spell as the women looked on in confusion. While the spell took a certain amount of focus to cast, it still left me plenty of time to look both women over. Their buckskin pants and shirts were mostly shredded leather that offered little to no protection from the elements, while their exposed skin was marred with bloody whip and claw marks. Obviously, they’d survived more than just the monsters’ invasion and had information I needed to know for my recon mission.
My first Minor Healing spell stabilized the woman’s wounds, giving me the time I needed to work. The next spell, Minor Mend bones, closed the gaping hole through her torso, which allowed my follow-up spells to bring her back to full health. I didn’t stop there. I went ahead and healed up the young mage and Neysa, before healing up my own wounds. By the time I was finished, both women were watching me carefully as Ulia, the older woman of the two, snatched up her spear again addressing me sharply.
”While I thank you for your healing, you can’t be a member of our House.” The spear didn’t waver from my chest in the swordswoman’s hands as she continued suspiciously. “The question is, who are you really and why are you helping us?”
“I understand your concern but just hear me out.” I said holding both hands. “I’m a newfar of House of Kayden that was allowed to train at the Temple of Light. I’ve also built a small village named Requiem for our people near the base of the mountains. Many of the surviving refugees from BrokenFang Hold are already there.”
“Newfar? What in the shadow of the Dark are newfar?” The young mage asked, nervously looking at her companion.
“Although I’ve never met one of these newfar, I have heard of them. They are travelers from far away that have returned to the land. That’s why we’ve never met him before.” Ulia said after a pause, lowering her spear tip. She gave a nod to her companion to follow suit before continuing.
“Once again, thank you for coming to our aid, but I’m afraid I don’t see how a village will help anything. If BrokenFang Hold is not retaken in less than four days, our house will cease to exist.”
“That’s why I’m working with Lady Chiara and Sergeant Maerwen on the details for our counterattack. I have some friends who have agreed to give us a hand and Sergeant Maerwen is in the process of training up our forces. Part of that is why we built Requiem, besides the need of having a safe place to lay our heads until we’re ready. Another part of that plan has me pulling recon of the forces we’re up against, which was why I happened to be out here to give the two of you a hand.”
For a moment, both women were too stunned by my words to even respond. Without saying a word, I slipped off my backpack and handed over the two wolfskin hides I’d taken for sleeping blankets to the women along with some food. The women hungrily stuffed the dried meat into their mouths as if they hadn’t eaten for days. Finishing up her meal, Ulia was the first to respond. Gripping my shoulder firmly, she spoke in a rush of words.
“There is little to no time to explain everything now, but if you promise to help rescue our companions from the Goblin Warband that captured our group, I will take you back myself into BrokenFang Hold if that is what you wish.”
New Quest! Rescuing captured refugees of House of Kayden captured by the invaders (Secret-Quest)!
Monster tribes of the north have captured a group of refugees escaping from BrokenFang Hold being led by Ulia Dathielen. Rescue the House of Kayden survivors.
Warning! This quest is timed! 1 hour and 30 minutes remaining! This quest will fail if all the refugees die!
23/25 Refugees Alive.
Objective: Rescue refugees and get them back to Requiem.
Difficulty: Hard.
Reward: Experience and Reputation with House of Kayden and Ulia Dathielen!
Accept: Yes / No
I wasn’t surprised to see the quest alert pop-up in my vision. Accepting the quest was a no-brainer. At this point it didn’t matter if the quest’s difficulty was hard or nightmare, I needed an escort into BrokenFang Hold and that was it. Period. End of story. Besides, that wasn’t even counting the possibility of having another twenty-three NPCs to help fill out our ranks for the counterattack against the northern invaders.
The women were insistent that we had to leave immediately to save their companions from certain death. I found out the reason for this quick enough when I asked why there were already 2 of the 25 refugees already dead. I mentally swore at the sudden look of horror on both women’s faces, which quickly led to another heated argument about how I knew that two of their companions had died as I silently promised myself not to talk openly about quests details to NPCs in the future. I gave my word to explain everything later, falling back on the same argument that the girls had used that there wasn’t enough time to discuss the issue if we wanted to save their companions.
It took a moment to pass out supplies and get both women geared up before heading out. Part of that process was going through the loot from the Troll. The take consisted of a two-handed sword named SoulBreaker and three Spears of Piercing. Taking a second, I analyzed the stats of each.
SoulBreaker
Item Quality: Superior
Item Type: Special
Attack: Two-hand Edge
Weapon Type: Sword
Damage: 160-185
Durability: 113/200
Weight: 14 kg
+15 Strength
-15 Spirit
- Blight (Type: Dark Magic) Reduction of all enemy attributes by 50% for 60 seconds, unless successful save vs. Spirit. Area of Effect: 10 Yard radius from the caster. Cooldown - 5 minutes.
Spear of Piercing (3x)
Item Quality: Good
Item Type: Crafted
Attack: Two-hand Edge
Weapon Type: Spear
Damage: 100-120
Damage Range: 80-120
Durability: 34/100
Weight: 7 kg
+30 Piercing Armor
I ended up offering Ulia the two-handed sword to use as a weapon, which she expertly swung a few times to get used to the balance. While the black blade was interesting with its Blight AOE and could be useful in the right situation, the swordswomen needed a weapon, and I was more than happy with my Great Sword of Corruption. Besides, I didn’t particularly want to part with any of the gear that I was currently using, especially since I preferred fighting with a sword and shield. Ulia, I learned as we worked, was one of the House of Kayden’s surviving weapon trainers. She was a no-nonsense individual with close-cropped, chestnut colored hair and piercing blue eyes that missed nothing.
From the little bit I learned as we prepared to move out, Ulia had been part of the force defending BrokenFang Hold. Her squad had been cut off when the outer wall collapsed. By the time they’d made their way back to the fight, the inner courtyard had been breached and the defenders completely overrun. Ulia had saved everyone she could as they fought a harried retreat which was when they’d picked up the group of twenty-five non-combatants. It’s also where she’d met with her young companion, Keela Moréfindiel who was a House of Kayden Dark mage.
Physically Keela was the complete opposite of the swordswoman. Her porcelain skin and long black hair gave her a soft elegance that was at odds with Ulia’s lean hardness. I offered the mage one of the spears to use in case she ran out of Mana. At first, she didn’t want to take it, but once I explained she could use it as a staff, she agreed readily enough. The rest of the spears I just loaded up into my backpack, since I already had more than enough weapons hanging off my body to outfit a small squad. Even after half a week of playing, the game mechanics still surprised me at times like this since my backpack was able to take both spears without any issues. The in-game inventory system basically made any container into a bag of holding.
In the time it took for me to take out the Troll and get everyone healed and geared up, the blizzard had noticeably worsened, which made the trek over the
mountain that much more difficult. The only good news was that the storm would help to camouflage our approach. The bad news was we had to travel a good hour to make it back to the Goblin encampment which would be hell in this weather. To be honest, I was surprised the women had managed to make it this far before the Troll had caught up to them.
The raid on the Goblins’ encampment was going to be a whole nother story. Supposedly there were only fifteen Goblin Raiders left to contend with, which at first didn’t sound so bad. That was until I realized that the only people fighting the Goblins would be the three of us. Even if we had the time to release the rest of the prisoners before the fight, I figured they wouldn’t be much of any help. Besides their weakened condition from the lack of food and water, their health wouldn’t be any better than the women's’ when I’d first met them. Not even mentioning the fact that none of them were trained as a combat class.
Surprisingly enough, we made relatively good time through the blizzard. There was something about having a goal to reach within a certain time limit that made the trek through the blowing sleet that much easier to contend with as I focused my thoughts on the coming battle. Before I knew it, we had crested the ridge and found the small outcropping of rocks the Goblins were using to shelter from the storm on the downside of the slope.
Unfortunately, in that short amount of time, the number of surviving prisoners had dropped from 23 to 20 as a feeling of dread crept into my soul. Reaching the edge of the enclosure, I saw that the rocks on the outskirts of the shelter created more of a shallow alcove than a true cave, which meant our assault would be that much more difficult. It was in that moment that I caught a glimpse of what was happening further back inside the hollow that bile rose in the back of my throat.
The Goblins were currently in the process of dismembering their recent kills. You could clearly see the large swaths of bloody snow where the Goblins had dragged their chosen victims from the line of hogtied prisoners that had been left near the outer ring of stones in the harsh weather. It was obvious from the gore left in the snow that death had not come quickly for their victims. Severed limbs and gnawed ribs clean of meat were haphazardly scattered around the firepit where the troop of Goblins sat lounging and laughing in their guttural language as they finished off their gruesome feast.